Financial Contrast: WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) vs. Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC)

Nicolet Bankshares (NYSE:NIC) and WaFd (NASDAQ:WAFD) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends, risk, earnings, profitability and valuation.

Dividends

Nicolet Bankshares pays an annual dividend of $1.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. WaFd pays an annual dividend of $1.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.6%. Nicolet Bankshares pays out 16.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. WaFd pays out 34.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Nicolet Bankshares has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years and WaFd has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years.

Profitability

This table compares Nicolet Bankshares and WaFd’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Nicolet Bankshares	21.77%	11.36%	1.62%
WaFd	18.47%	8.98%	0.89%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Nicolet Bankshares and WaFd”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Nicolet Bankshares	$556.52 million	6.17	$150.69 million	$8.81	18.61
WaFd	$1.41 billion	1.56	$226.07 million	$3.17	9.38

WaFd has higher revenue and earnings than Nicolet Bankshares. WaFd is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Nicolet Bankshares, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Nicolet Bankshares has a beta of 0.64, suggesting that its share price is 36% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, WaFd has a beta of 0.89, suggesting that its share price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Nicolet Bankshares and WaFd, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Nicolet Bankshares	0	2	4	1	2.86
WaFd	0	3	1	1	2.60

Nicolet Bankshares currently has a consensus target price of $183.00, suggesting a potential upside of 11.62%. WaFd has a consensus target price of $35.25, suggesting a potential upside of 18.53%. Given WaFd’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe WaFd is more favorable than Nicolet Bankshares.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

43.1% of Nicolet Bankshares shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 83.7% of WaFd shares are owned by institutional investors. 7.2% of Nicolet Bankshares shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.5% of WaFd shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Nicolet Bankshares beats WaFd on 10 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Nicolet Bankshares

Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Nicolet National Bank that provides banking products and services for businesses and individuals in Wisconsin and Michigan. The company accepts checking, savings, and money market accounts; various certificates of deposit; and individual retirement accounts. It also offers commercial loans, including commercial, industrial, and business loans and lines of credit; commercial real estate loans; agricultural (AG) production and AG real estate loans; commercial real estate investment real estate loans; construction and land development loans; residential real estate loans, such as residential first lien and junior lien mortgages, home equity loans, lines of credit, and residential construction loans; and consumer loans. In addition, the company provides cash management, international banking, personal brokerage, safe deposit boxes, and trust and fiduciary services, as well as wealth management and retirement plan services. Further, it offers mortgage refinancing; online services, such as commercial, retail, and trust online banking; automated bill payment, mobile banking deposits and account access, and remote deposit capture services; and other services consisting of wire transfers, debit cards, credit cards, pre-paid gift cards, direct deposits, and official bank checks, as well as facilitates crop insurance products. The company was formerly known as Green Bay Financial Corporation and changed its name to Nicolet Bankshares, Inc. in March 2002. The company was incorporated in 2000 and is headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

About WaFd

WaFd, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Washington Federal Bank that provides lending, depository, insurance, and other banking services in the United States. The company offers deposit products, including business and personal checking accounts, and term certificates of deposit, as well as money market accounts and passbook savings accounts. It also provides single-family dwellings, construction, land acquisition and development, consumer lot, multi-family residential, commercial real estate, home equity, business, and consumer loans, as well as commercial and industrial loans. In addition, the company offers insurance brokerage services, such as individual and business insurance policies; holds and markets real estate properties; and debit and credit cards, as well as acts as the trustee. It serves consumers, mid-sized and large businesses, and owners and developers of commercial real estate. The company was formerly known as Washington Federal, Inc. and changed its name to WaFd, Inc in September 2023. WaFd, Inc was founded in 1917 and is headquartered in Seattle, Washington.